Um....wow.
Mass. Governor compares immigrant kids to Jews turned away in 1939, offers to shelter them
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D) announced a proposal on Friday for two military facilities to serve as host sites for some of the thousands of undocumented Central American immigrants who have come into the U.S. in recent months, saying the move falls in line with the country’s tradition of helping children in need.
“We have rescued Irish children from famine, Russian and Ukrainian children from religious persecution, Cambodian children from genocide, Haitian children from earthquakes, Sudanese children from civil war, and New Orleans children from Hurricane Katrina,” Patrick said. “Once, in 1939, we turned our backs on Jewish children fleeing the Nazis, and it remains a blight on our national reputation. The point is that this good Nation is great when we open our doors and our hearts to needy children, and diminished when we don’t.”
Patrick specified
using Joint Base Cape Cod in Bourne and Westover Air Base in Chicopee, with the operation supervised and funded by the Department of Health and Human Services and children staying there an average of 35 days while they are processed to determine whether they will join family members in this country or be deported.
This, frankly, is leadership.
I have been sick of hearing the incessant whining from the right about this problem. Bush signed it into law a long time ago but somehow, it is Obama's fault. Somehow HE encouraged this.
Whatever.
We have thousands of children needing to be processed and whatever Obama has done has been opposed while the GOP whines Obama is doing nothing.
Nothing new there.
Gov. Patricks' decisive intervention here is a breath of fresh air.
Now...await the explosion of pointy wingut heads....
[UPDATE] Apologies to Raw Story, who apparently were (was?) displeased with my full use of their headline. I have done this before and not heard such feedback; however, rest assured, I won't let it happen again.
[UPDATE] Gator asked me to add Governor Patrick's contact email so people can shower him with thanks and praises for this.
http://www.mass.gov/...
Doc